CHICAGO: Chicago Board of Trade soyabean futures rallied and soyameal hit a contract high on Friday on strong demand for US supplies, analysts said.

Soyameal supplies out of Argentina, a major exporter, are tight after drought reduced production. Disappointing rains in central-west Brazil further increased concerns about the region, after dryness recently slowed Brazilian soyabean plantings.

“We have a resurgence in demand in soyameal once again,” said Arlan Suderman, chief commodities economist at StoneX. “We had a break in price and that uncovered some fresh demand.” The most-active soyabean contract was up 18-1/2 cents at $13.18-3/4 a bushel by 12 p.m. CDT (1700 GMT) at the CBOT. December soyameal climbed $15.8 to $445.30 per ton and set a contract high of $448.4 per ton.

Unconfirmed chatter circulated in the markets about China cancelling purchases of Brazilian soyabeans. Traders said US soyabeans are still more expensive than Brazilian supplies, though.

“There are rumors that China washed out some cargoes of Brazilian soyabean, meaning they’ll probably be looking more for US soyabeans,” Suderman said. “That’s providing some support.” Corn futures were up 1/2 cent at $4.79-3/4 a bushel, while wheat fell 7 cents to $5.72-1/2 at the CBOT.

Wheat tumbled on news that shipping via Ukraine’s new Black Sea export corridor resumed after a three-day pause. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov denied on Thursday reports by Ukrainian and British firms that a recently established Black Sea export channel had been suspended due to risks posed by Russian warplanes and mines.

The headlines raised uncertainty over Kyiv’s efforts to revive export trade after Moscow in July quit an accord allowing Ukrainian grain shipments through the Black Sea.

Ukraine’s grain exports so far in the 2023/24 season have fallen to 8.72 million metric tons from 12.34 million a year ago, according to agriculture ministry data. In the KC wheat market, December futures set a contract low after beneficial US rains.